Please post your Hemispheric Mode Indicator (HMI)
results as a COMMENT to this blog post.
My HMI score was -1, favoring the left hemisphere,
but only just barely so.
I feel that this score adequately represents who I am. I can adjust myself to focus in on details, be organized, calculate, work towards goals, consider management, remove myself from situations, and use words to my advantage. On the other hand, I can also let loose, be creative, go with the flow when neccesary, make connections, use pictures and graphics to my advantage, and be empathic. I have the ability to shift back and forth.
However, this can also create chaos in my life. There are times when I can literally feel my brain floundering. I can't explain what it feels like. I visualize it as oil and water that has been swirled together. Sometimes I'm presented with a problem or situation and I simply freeze. I can feel my brain jumble up as it tries to decide which half is going to take over-as though the two halves are at war with each other. It's the strangest sensation. I wish I knew how to make them work together...
I feel that this score adequately represents who I am. I can adjust myself to focus in on details, be organized, calculate, work towards goals, consider management, remove myself from situations, and use words to my advantage. On the other hand, I can also let loose, be creative, go with the flow when neccesary, make connections, use pictures and graphics to my advantage, and be empathic. I have the ability to shift back and forth.
However, this can also create chaos in my life. There are times when I can literally feel my brain floundering. I can't explain what it feels like. I visualize it as oil and water that has been swirled together. Sometimes I'm presented with a problem or situation and I simply freeze. I can feel my brain jumble up as it tries to decide which half is going to take over-as though the two halves are at war with each other. It's the strangest sensation. I wish I knew how to make them work together...
My HMI score is -36 so fairly left-brained. When I look at the characteristics of left-brained, I can see a lot of myself in them. I teach communication theory and research and I’m the speech/debate coach. I like to break things into parts and I love language. I read a lot. I tell myself it’s because I’m constantly looking for pieces for students, but it’s really that I like words.
ReplyDeleteI can also link this to why students and I sometimes get frustrated with each other and why I sometimes got frustrated with faculty when I was taking classes in graduate school. For example, I feel myself getting annoyed when students jump from A to M. I find myself mentally rolling my eyes and then I say “Yes, you’re exactly right, but some of us need to see it broken down more to understand so, be patient with us as we go through the steps.”
I give a really detailed reading/assignment section in my syllabus and some students get really upset if we move things around or make changes and I think these might be the “even more left-brained than Lora” students. It is really challenging for me and a little ironic.
When I was in graduate school, I started to take a class with a professor and dropped the class after the first class period. He came in with five books, stood at the front of the room, and told us we’d read books A and Q and if we had time we’d look at book C or maybe book Z. We’d write “Oh, two or three papers.” There was no syllabus. I just couldn’t face that sort of uncertainty and I think part of that stress was my need for clear sequencing.
Another instructor I remember from grad school told stories the whole class period except when she asked us what we would do in that situation. She did this every class period. My notes were a mess. After a month I gave up trying to take notes. I remember the readings and what I learned from doing the assignments but the class itself—no real memory of any content.
This activity has been really valuable in helping me understand the reason why sometimes there’s a clash between teacher and student.
I enjoyed reading this and love your honesty. But clearly there are lazy people disguised as teachers. Sounds like you unfortunately ran into a coupe of those.
ReplyDeleteAgain, well said.
Hi again. My HMI score is +43. Bernice says that is “moderate” right brained. However, I feel “really-really” right brained. It feels like I am hard wired to be right brained but I have had to learn to live in a right brained world. Not to mention I am left handed as well so it has been an interesting journey. I have really rarely met anyone who reminds me of myself although I have been privileged to be around some people whom I can synergize with and that can actually appreciate and enjoy my personality. I generally find it hard to do alot of right brained thinking the way I find it hard to use my right hand to do heavy lifting. However, because this is a left brained world I have had to learn to use my whole brain more than most people. The same way I have had to learn to use both hands. I never liked using left handed scissors or sitting in a left handed desk or any special left handed accommodations in school. Although I only write with my left hand, I find myself doing alot of things right handed. So I said all that to say...it is the same with me being Right Brained. I have had to learn to stretch and become more Whole Brained because I was never afforded the luxury of just basking in my preference. I had to learn to think, speak and act in a left brain fashion even as a child. BUT with this test I can see even with all that stretching I am still Right Brained at my core. My score probably more so reflects me after being stretched. My desire is to become even more Whole Brained and definitely be able to create an atmosphere that encourages the same whether personally or in the classroom.
ReplyDeleteMy HMI result is +14 which places me primarily in the right hemisphere. I can certainly relate to operating from that area of my brain. I feel as if that's a good place to be but there is always room for improvement.
ReplyDelete